Durians, Dinosaurs and Broken Dreams
by beluong
Summary: A story for you.
1. Introduction

Hey! Yeah, you. If you're not Diana… then, I don't understand why you're reading this. Please exit this tab or go back or something. Because, yeah. I'm not being rude, I'm just embarrassed t_t So, please understand that if you continue to read this, you might die of… I don't know. I'm just kidding. If you actually really want to read this due to whatever reason, I advise you to just skip to the story and ignore this first part, cause it's my message to her. And ugh, I am very embarrassed to have other people read my messages. And, I don't even think I can handle being there when she reads this. So yeah, thanks!

To the real thing now:

Omg, hey Diana! I see you're reading my "fanfic" for you. LOOOL, don't have too high of an expectation for this story, so you won't be disappointed. In my opinion, it's not that good, cause I wrote it in a month or something. And I had a serious case of writer's block. It took me a while to even start, because I didn't know what to write. I _knew_ I wanted to incorporate Durian in this, and I did! (Aha, I know you'll love it.) But, since it is your present, I also included some other guy. But, who you end up with? I don't really remember, I guess you'll just have to read to find out.

Hmm, there are some parts that are quite cheesy, I think. So, please forgive me for that. And also, if you find that some characters are out of character, please also forgive me. Because: 1) I either don't know the character at all 2) Don't really know what this person would/wouldn't do 3) Just need to make the story more interesting.

I think the plot of this story is similar to that other one you read before, but hopefully, it's not too alike? I brainstormed a lot of different ideas, and I guess I like this one the most! Uh so yeah. Hopefully, you'll like it or at least enjoy laughing at how badly written it is. I know it'll never be as good as some fanfics that you read, because those people are pro and have a lot of good ideas and good writing styles. And yeah. Plus, I have no experience in writing fanfiction at all (Expect for that "Aladdin and Jasmin" one).

So yeah. It took me a while to finally finish this. And every day, I would sit at my desk at type away furiously to finish this in time for your birthday. Nah, just kidding, I would sit at my desk and stare at the screen. And not know what to write for 10 hours. And then, have a flash of inspiration for maybe 5 minutes. Point is, I put a lot of sweat and tears and love and cheese into this.

Oh oh oh! Just to let you know, there is absolutely zero smut in this. So, please do not expect it. Because there will be no way I will write smut for you, sorry :D Even if it is your birthday. I don't think I can do it… -not experienced enough- And, I don't think I want to be experienced at all. So yeah, just a heads up that there will be no smut.

And please excuse ANY typo. Yeah, thanks. I will edit, but still. Don't judge me t ^ t

Ahh, so it begins. Hope you enjoy it! :3


	2. Chapter 1

_She grabbed onto his wrist as he turned to walk away. For many seconds, they stood there. Frozen. As if nothing in the world could make her let go and nothing in the world could make him stay. _

_ "Sorry," he whispered. "I have to go- " _

_ But before he could finish, the ground began to shake. The sky turned dark and it started to rain. She looked at his face to see his lips moving, but she could not make out what he was saying over the noise of everything breaking apart in the distance. And soon, he broke away from her grip and started to run in the opposite direction. She started to cry and screamed at him to stop. She screamed for him to come back, that he didn't have to leave, that they could fix things. But no matter how hard to screamed, nothing but silence came off of her lips. _

_ "Please…"_

Diana's eyes fluttered open and she felt a single tear roll down her cheek. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart. She looked at her clock and saw that she still had 30 minutes before her alarm rung. However, instead of trying to fall back asleep, she got out of bed and went to make herself some breakfast.

2 hours later, Diana was sitting on the subway on her way to work. As she got off at her stop, a man rushed past and accidently bumped into her. He continued walking, as if he was completely unaware of the small exchange between the two of them. As Diana was glaring him down, she found that his profile from the back looked very familiar. She found herself staring as his figure became smaller and smaller, and soon disappeared into the crowd.

"Couldn't be." She whispered to herself. She shook her head to clear it of its thoughts and turned to continue on her way to work. She worked at a small printing company where she sat for 8 hours every day, sorting out files of past, present and future customers. And although it wasn't her dream job, it was easy enough to not give her stress and it paid well. And plus, it was really close to _Valerie's Café_, where her best friend worked part-time to pay off her last year at university.

As noon rolled around, the office bustled with activity as people took their breaks and sat down to chat with each other. Instead of staying behind in the office, Diana grabbed her stuff and left the building for her lunch break. When she walked into the café, she saw Megan already sitting at their regular seat with two hot chocolates in front of her.

"Hey." Diana sat down in the empty seat across from Megan and took a sip of the hot chocolate.

"Hey, how was work so far?"

"The same."

"So boring and tedious?"

"Nope, fun and exciting."

"Diana," Megan sighed, "Why do you do this yourself? Just quit the job and find another that you'd actually enjoy doing."

"And what do you suggest?"

"Drawing."

Diana stopped. She put down her cup and took a deep breath. "Megan, you know I can't do it anymore. I thought you of all people would understand—"

"I know, I'm sorry. But, it's what you've wanted to do your whole life. And I know there's still a part of you that yearns to draw, instead of filing papers all day long. I don't believe that you've actually given up on that."

Diana sighed and found herself fingering the scar above her left eyebrow. The pain behind the memory was more agonizing than the actual scar. "You know I've tried, but it's just… It reminds me of…"

"It's okay, I understand. Sorry." And the few moments that follow are filled with silence. The same silence that they encounter every other time that this subject has passed through their lips. It wasn't the awkward kind, nor was it the comfortable kind. It was the kind that hung in the air, begging to be heard and to be acknowledged. But, like the other times, someone always changed the subject.

"Doing anything this Friday?" This time it was Megan's turn.

"Not really. Why, you have something in mind?"

"Well, a friend asked me to go check out some new restaurant and I wanted you to come along."

"So, you kind of already decided for me?"

Megan gave a guilty smile. "Yeah, kind of. You're coming, though, right? Unless, you have other things planned."

"I do, actually. But, I'll clear my whole day's schedule, just for you." And at that, the two friends laughed and the awkward tension between them eased. It felt like high school again, joking around with each other. But, back then, the laughs came so easy. Megan, for one, didn't have to worry about working two jobs to pay off her student debts. And, Diana didn't have to worry about forgetting her past and rebuilding her future.

"Oh, stop it, Diana. You're making me blush."


	3. Chapter 2

That night, Diana couldn't fall asleep. She twisted and turned in bed, and when she couldn't take it anymore, she got out of bed. She went into her kitchen and boiled some water to make some tea, she figured she wouldn't be sleeping any time soon anyway.

As she sat drinking her tea, she thought about what Megan said before at the café, about her still wanting to draw. And, as much as she wanted to deny it, it was true. Before, drawing was an escape from the real world. But, now, every time she picked up a pencil with the goal to draw, memories of before flooded her mind. And, it was like she was trapped.

For whatever reason, she felt that it would be different tonight. So, she carried her cup of tea into her room and sat at the desk that was long forgotten. She reached into her drawers to find a piece of paper and pencil. She paused before she placed the pencil onto the paper, and attempted to clear her mind of all her thoughts.

Diana took a deep breath and started drawing an eye at the center of the page. It felt nice to draw again. But before she could even finish the eye, her mind wandered and she found herself thinking about the first time they kissed.

It was their second year of university and they both had their own assignments to complete. They met up at a quiet sitting area at school, and sat across from each other, both working hard on their laptops. Diana was shading, colouring and perfecting her drawing, and concentrated hard on the screen. She grew tired and wanted to rest her eyes, so she glanced up to see how he was doing.

She stared at him as he worked, and watched as his eyebrows scrunched up in concentration. As she studied his face, she unknowingly started to smile to herself and he chose that time to look up at her. Her smile was contagious and soon, the two of them were smiling at each other.

He stood from his seat and sat down next to her while she went back to working on the eye of her drawing.

"Looks good."

She turned to smile at him, to find that he had brought his face closer to the screen to see. Now, the two of them were a mere one inch away, looking into each other's eyes and smiling. Diana wasn't even expecting it when he leaned in and kissed her.

Diana had always wondered what it was like to kiss. And based on that one kiss, she thought it was pretty great. Her cheeks became warm, her palms sweaty, her stomach full of butterflies and her heart beating. When he pulled away and looked at her, she couldn't stop smiling.

Diana's pencil veered off track and a straight line formed through the eye. She dropped her pencil and sighed in exasperation. Like every other time that she tried to pick up her old passion, she found her mind drifting back to the past and she couldn't concentrate on the present.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move on from him. It was like the memories that they shared were forever engraved in her thoughts and there was no way of removing them. And although every part of her ached for him to be there with her, she knew there was no way he was coming back. And so, she gave up on drawing again that night and walked back to bed.

It seemed impossible for her to forget about him, just as it was for him to come back.


	4. Chapter 3

As Diana approached the place Megan had told her they would meet, she saw Megan talking with a boy around their age. She couldn't help but notice the smile on his face and how it seemed contagious. Before Diana could scold herself for thinking such thoughts, she realized that this was probably the friend Megan was referring to. Three of them going out to dinner together? Diana sighed to herself, she did not want to be a third-wheel and she made a mental note to give Megan a piece of her mind later on.

Diana considered leaving and texting Megan that she suddenly fell ill and couldn't make it. (Yes, Megan finally got a cell phone after years of not having one.) She nodded to herself and was about to turn to go back home, when she heard her name being called.

"Diana! Over here!" It was Megan. Well, so much for that plan. Diana turned to face her friend and smiled. She paused and waited as Megan walked up to where she was standing with her friend following behind.

"Hey!" Megan greeted.

"Hi, sorry, did you wait long?"

"No, we both just got here a few minutes ago. Anyway, this is Derek," She motioned to the guy standing next to her and then pointed at Diana "And this is Diana. I'm sure you guys will get along perfectly."

Diana looked up at Derek to find that he was already staring. The moment their eyes met, he smiled at her and offered her his hand.

"Nice to meet you," he grinned, "I've heard a lot about you."

For a moment, Diana hesitated. She didn't know what to say. It seemed as if she lost her ability to think, breath, and talk, all at once. But, after a quick nudge from Megan, she reached out and shook his hand.

"It's nice to meet you too." There was a moment of silence after, as if they all ran out of things to say already, after only a few minutes of talking. Diana found a spot on the ground to stare at, not wanting to make eye contact with him, scared she would find herself speechless again. Nor did she want to make eye contact with Megan, scared she might just kill her with one glare.

"Well, since we're all here, let's go." Diana and Derek nodded in agreement as Megan led the three of them to the restaurant.

The restaurant was an Italian restaurant squeezed between a book store and a bakery. Even at 5PM, it was already filled with people. Many of the seats were taken by elderly couples who wanted to beat the dinner time rush and avoid leaving their homes too late in the evening.

As they were walked in to be seated by a waitress, another came up to their table to ask if she could take a chair for another table. Megan told her it was fine, and sat down on the chair across the one they started pulling away.

"What are you guys waiting for? Sit down." Megan looked up at them, and Diana moved to sit next to her. To her surprise, as she was getting into her seat, Derek pulled the chair out and helped her in. Diana struggled to say thanks, and it came out as a soft whisper. She considered saying it again, but saw Megan smiling to herself. If she heard, he heard.

"Oh, what a gentleman you are, Derek." Megan said, as he sat down in his seat.

"Only towards ladies."

"You saying I'm not a lady or something?"

"You're not." Diana teased, and at the same time, Derrick stated; "You're not."

It was silent as the two looked up and smiled at each other, and Megan grinned to herself.

As if on cue, the waitress arrived at their table and asked if they're ready to order. Each quickly scanned their menus and ordered. As they waited for their food to come, Megan received a call on her cell and looked at the two of them for approval to pick the phone up at the table. After they both nod, she brought the phone to her ear. After she mumbled agreements into her phone for a few minutes, Megan finally hung up her phone with an apologetic expression on her face.

"What happened?" Diana asked.

"Sorry, I just got a call from the café, and they want me to work a shift for some girl who bailed on them tonight. You guys don't mind me leaving, right?" She frowned at both of them. She went from Diana to Derek and back, and hoped at least one of them would say something.

"Yeah, it's fine – you have to work. I know this job is important to you…" Diana didn't want her friend to leave, but she didn't want to be the one to hold her back. Plus, she knew Megan needed the money. She lived on her own, and still had university loans to pay off, as well as her coming year.

"Yeah, we don't want to blaming us if you get fired or something." Derek added with a smile.

"I'm so sorry guys, I'll make it up to you next time for sure. I promise!"

"Okay then, you're paying for all of us next time." Diana laughed as Megan gave her a playful glare and paused upon realization that after Megan left, she would be alone with some guy she had only just met. Soon, Megan had gathered all her things, said her goodbyes and walked out of the restaurant; leaving Diana and Derek alone at their table.


	5. Chapter 4

As Diana and Derek stepped out of the restaurant, the breezy autumn air filled their lungs and brushed against their cheeks. It felt good to leave the heat and chatter of the restaurant behind. Although Megan had left them by themselves, the dinner was filled with mindless conversations rather than silence. Diana found that it was easy to talk to him and he did not make things awkward or uncomfortable. She never felt that she connected with someone as easily before. Besides Megan… and the one she tried so hard to forget.

Derek had offered to walk her home, and after all her protests, he still insisted. And so, the two of them trudged down the sidewalk to her apartment. They walked side by side and laughed as they each told their own stories.

"So… tell me about that battle scar of yours."

Diana stopped heart abruptly, but she continued to walk, "I'd rather not."

"Why? I'm sure it has a great story behind it."

"And even if it does, I don't see how it's any of your business." The moment the words came out of her mouth, she instantly regretted them. He remained silent, looking straight-ahead, as if the sudden outburst from Diana had stolen his voice. The longer the silence stayed, the more rueful Diana became. The longer the silence remained unbroken, the more she wanted him to break it. The longer the silence grew, the more she felt the need to explain to him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lash out at you like that… But, it's just… I'd rather not bring something of the past up. And it's not that great of a story anyway."

As if her short apology broke him out of his trance, he smiled warmly at her and nodded.

"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have pushed you like that."

And the silence continued.

"It was a few years ago. I was with my at-the-time boyfriend, and we were attacked by some muggers." That wasn't a lie. But not the whole truth either.

At first, Derek had no idea what she was rambling about. But then, he realized that she was telling him about her scar and how she had got it. He glanced at her to find that she was talking to him, but not really with him. As she continued on with her story, her eyes had that faraway look to it giving him the impression that she was reliving that night in her mind.

"Things happened. And that's how I got this." She motioned at her scar. The story was quite vague, but it felt good to let it out for the first time in a long time. And she felt that she owed it to him to give a small explanation.

"You didn't get hurt any more than that, right?" Derek asked as he turned to face her, to find that she had stopped walking and was a few paces behind him. She had her eyes closed and her head faced towards the sky. He watched as she stood silently, taking deep breaths. In, out. In, out. He was about to repeat his question, when she finally answered.

"No. I didn't get hurt." She reached her hand out and pointed at the apartment building that she stopped in front of. "Here's my stop."

"Oh." He found himself a bit disappointed that this is where they have to part ways for the night. "Well, good night."

She nodded and finally opened her eyes to look at him.

"Good night. Thanks for walking me home." Diana gave him a smile, waved, and turned to walk inside her building. He stood and watched her until she disappeared into the elevator. And even still, Derek couldn't seem to move his feet. Or as if he didn't want to leave. But soon, he turned to continue on his way home. As he walked, the whole day's events replayed in his mind. And he noticed his lips forging into a smile every now and then.

Then, something jumped out at him. He didn't know why he failed to ask and why she failed to mention. And as he continued walking, he thought maybe that was why she didn't want to answer to begin with. Shaking his head, he told himself not to overanalyze, and tried to convince himself to stop allowing one questions to continue to bother him.

And, the more he tried to forget about it, the more it repeated in his head. So, as he walked home, only one thing pounded through his mind.

_What of your at-the-time-boyfriend, Diana? What happened to him?_


	6. Chapter 5

Over the next few months, as winter rolled around, Diana and Derek grew closer together. It was really easy to talk to him and Diana enjoyed his company. And although Megan wanted them to be together, Diana wasn't ready to be in a relationship again. Not yet.

As Diana opened and closed her kitchen cabinets, looking for some popcorn, there came a knock on her door.

"Coming!" She called out. She walked over to her door and squinted through the eyehole to make sure it was Derek. After she confirmed that it was him, she opened the door and welcomed him in.

"Hey! I brought popcorn. Not sure if you'd like… but…" Derek held up the bag in his hands and Diana took it from it.

"What a coincidence, I was just looking for it at home. But, I ran out." Diana showed him in and Derek sat down on the couch as she went to the kitchen to prepare the popcorn. The two of them had planned to have a Supernatural marathon together ever since they discovered that they both were big fans of it. And finally, both of them found the time to do so. (Diana had asked Megan to come as well, but she had to go to work that day.)

After getting everything ready, Diana and Derek sat side by side on the floor in front of the T.V. with the bowl of popcorn on the table in front of them. And, then the marathon started.

After a few episodes, the popcorn had started to run low. And only a small pile remained at the bottom of the bowl. Without taking their eyes off the screen, they both reached into the bowl and grabbed for popcorn. Accidentally, their hands brushed against each other's.

Butterflies flew around in Diana's stomach, and she yelled at them to stop. Before she knew what was happening, she found herself gazing into his eyes, as he stared back. Then, very slowly, he started to lean in closer to her. Her heart beat faster.

Diana was so confused. Should she look away before he got too close? She didn't want to ruin the friendship they had. On the other hand, there was a part of her that wanted to see what would happen next. As he continued to move closer to her, Diana held her breath.

Closer.

Closer.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

The ringing of Diana's cell phone jolted both of them out of their seats. And Derek immediately turned back to focus his attention of the T.V. screen, feeling embarrassed. Diana jumped at her cell phone, and picked it up.

"Hello?" Her voice sounded uneasy, even to her own ears.

"Hey, what's up?" Megan. Perfect timing.

"Uh, nothing. Just watching Supernatural."

"Oh right, Derek's there, right?" She could feel her friend's smile through the phone. Diana rolled her eyes inwardly.

"Yeah, he's here. Want to say hi or something?"

"Nope, it's fine. Hope I didn't interrupt anything." Megan's suggestive tone suggested that she had no idea that she indeed, did interrupt something that was about to turn into something similar to what she was suggesting.

"You didn't. Is that all? Just called to check on me?"

"Why are you so desperate to get me off the phone?"

"Nothing, it's just because you're making me miss my Destiel. God, don't you have work or something?"

Megan laughed and promised not to call again. She was on her break, and just wanted to see what Diana was up to. After they hung up, Diana went back to watch Supernatural. But, now she couldn't concentrate on what was going on in the show anymore. The tension in the room kept getting in the way.

After the last episode, they both decided it was time to call it a night and Derek got up to leave. Diana walked with him to the door and stood by as he walked out.

"That was fun, we should do it again sometime." He smiled at her and paused to wait for her response.

"Yeah… definitely. Maybe next time, Megan can join us."

Both of them paused and waited for the other to restart the conversation.

"Anyway, I'll see you later."

"Yup, bye."

Yet, he still didn't move from his spot outside her door. And she still didn't close the door.

"Look, about that… about before – I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. I wasn't thinking and –"

"It's fine. Don't worry about it." Diana was relieved that they cleared that up, or else it would bother her for the rest of the night. It was nothing. Nothing even happened. Just two friends watching their favourite show together. Nothing else.

Out of nowhere, he leaned down and gave her a quick peck on her cheek. She felt blood rush to her cheeks and she glanced up at him with surprise. Derek brought his hands up and ruffled at his hair awkwardly.

"Alright, bye then." He smiled at her. And she smiled back.

"Good night."


	7. Chapter 6

When she awoke the next morning, Diana had a feeling inside of her. Be it a good or bad one, she wasn't sure, but it was as if she knew something would happen. But as usual, she shrugged it aside and didn't give it another thought.

Her morning was just like any other; she ate breakfast, watched a bit of T.V., scrolled through this blogging site filled with only pictures, and tried to catch up on some shows. Then, she took out her phone, unlocked her phone… and played a game of Angry Birds. In space. When, out of nowhere, there came a knock at her door.

Diana paused. Who would be knocking at her door? She wasn't expecting anyone. Nor did door-to-door sellers come into the apartment. So, who was it? Suddenly, Diana's heart beat faster, out of fear. In her head, she thought of all the people that could greet her when she opened the door. A serial-killer, a crazed prison escapee, a rapist, a robber.

There came another knock. And another. The person was growing impatient.

Diana slowly walked towards her door and took a deep breath. She brought her eye to the peephole and looked out beyond her door. As her eye focused through the hole, she saw herself staring at a close-up version of her best friend's face. Megan had brought her face right up to the hole and was smiling at Diana. Diana almost screamed and immediately flung open her door.

"What the hell! What are you doing? Why are you here? Why didn't you call beforehand? Oh my jesus, Megan."

"Calm down. I was just getting off work at the store, and I thought I'd just drop by. Why you so psyched out?" She laughed at Diana's pale face and walked past her friend into the living room. Aside from working at the café, Megan worked at a small boutique as well. (She really needed the money.)

"Oh yes, come in, Megan." Diana glowered sarcastically.

"Thanks! So, what you up to?" Megan had already found her way to the couch and was currently lying across the whole thing.

"Nothing really, just sitting around."

"How was yesterday?" Megan enthusiastically raised and dropped her eyebrows a few times.

"It was… good." Diana found a smile forming on her face and that was all it took. Megan sat straight up and smiled at Diana.

"Yeah?"

Diana recognized that look and that smile and that tone of voice.

"Oh my god, no, Megan. Nothing happened!"

"I didn't even say anything – what happened?!"

"It was nothing, really. Just a small kiss on the cheek. A friendly one."

"FRIENDLY KISS ON THE CHEEK? I DON'T EVEN THINK THAT EXISTS, DIANA. OH MY GOODNESS. Derek, Diana. Diana, Derek. Diana-rek? Der-iana? Der-ian? Durian! Huh, huh, huh? "

"Ugh, can you not?"

Megan laughed out loud and fell back onto the couch. She took a big sigh and gave Diana a sideways glance. "Give him a chance, though, okay? He's a good person."

"Wha-"

"I just want you to be happy… Anyway, I've got to go. I got a shift at the café tonight as well, so I gotta go rest up. Sorry!" Megan picked herself off of the couch and picked her stuff off of the floor and walked to where Diana was standing.

"Alright, don't stress out too much about your jobs." They hugged and Megan left, closing the door behind her.

A while after Megan left, Diana grew hungry and started craving some pasta. Since she had nothing else planned for the rest of the day, she decided she would just home cook lunch and left to do some grocery shopping.

Upon arrival outside her apartment building with bags of groceries in her hands, the feeling from the morning returned. Diana, again, ignored it. But, it wouldn't be ignored. It kept tugging at her insides, made her heart beat faster and gave her butterflies in her stomach.

Diana continued to attempt to push the feeling away as she walked towards the elevator and reached to press the button to call down the elevator. But, before her finger even touched the button, the bell dinged, alerting Diana that it had arrived.

The next few minutes felt like it was going in slow motion. The elevator stopped. Diana glanced at the doors, as she waited for it to open. The doors slowly opened. Opened a small gap. Bigger. Bigger. And then, she caught her breath. It felt as if the time had finally caught up with her, and the slow time had caused her to be short of breath.

She thought to herself; "No. It can't be. You must be dreaming. Wake up, Diana. Wake up."

Alas, it was no dream. And it took one word to break Diana out of her trance.

"Diana."

Her heart stopped. How she missed his voice. How she missed how he said her name. How she missed him. But she tried to calm herself down. She didn't want to get her hopes up, to only have them crash down once again. She convinced herself that it wasn't possible. There was no way he could be standing there in front of her. She worried that the moment she spoke, moved or breathed, he would disappear and she would awake from this dream.

"Dino?"


	8. Chapter 7

A few hours later, Diana found herself in her bed, buried under her blankets, pillows and duvets. She had just awakened from a long sleep and her eyes felt as if she had just cried. She looked around her and found tissues lying all over her bed. She _had _just cried. She let out a big sigh and dropped her head back down on her pillow. She thought back to when the elevator doors opened. The shock. The surprise. The regret. The confusion. And the anger.

- _Flashback –_

"Diana."

"Dino?"

He walked towards her. And instead of stepping away from him, she found herself paralyzed. And as he walked towards her, she could only focus on the face she had missed so much. The one that she tried every day to forget about. The one that she thought she would never be able to see again.

His hair was still the short messy blond that it was. His eyes still looked at her as if she was the only thing he could see. But, his lips looked so sad. As if they haven't smiled in ages. And she realized then that she missed his smile and how it made her feel like everything would be okay.

Upon this realization, she grew angry at him. She had thought him dead all these years, she had tried to move on, and had given up on herself. Yet, he was living all this time. And didn't even think of telling her. Not even a call or text to say "Hey, I'm not dead yet."

"Diana. How… how have you been?"

This simple question made Diana snap.

"How have I been?! I don't know! What the hell do you think? I've been living the past 3 years of my life thinking the love of my life is lying dead in a grave somewhere. I spent these three years killing myself over the fact that I was the one who killed you. I was the one who killed my own boyfriend. And you've been here this whole time? You couldn't even…" Diana didn't realize that she had started crying.

"Wha—I didn't…"

"I don't want to hear your excuses." She punched at the elevator button, hoping that it would sense her urgency and the doors would open immediately. But, they kept her waiting. Her tears continued to flow down her cheeks and she stopped trying to wipe them away. Out of nowhere, hands wrapped around her from the back and a head came to rest on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." He breathed into her ear. At first, her heart stopped. But, soon it started beating very quickly. Out of anger. She pushed him away and turned to the staircase, and ran up the flights of stairs as Dino trailed behind her. She ran into her apartment and slammed the door behind her, leaning against it to take a breather. On the other side, Diana heard him pleading for her to open the door.

"Diana, I don't know what's going on. Please just open the door. I really missed you all this time. And I wanted to come see you…"

"Stop your bullshitting. For whatever reason that you're here to see me now, it's not good enough for me to open this door for you." She slid down her door, and had her head in her hands. "Just go."

"Diana… just –"

"Go! I don't want to talk to you!" Lie.

"I'm sorry… "

"I never want to see you here again." Another lie.

"Diana…"

"I was over you a long time ago, and I don't need you in my life anymore." The biggest lie ever.

Then, there was silence.


	9. Chapter 8

Sunday passed by like a blur. Diana sat around at home, going in and out of fits of confusion, sadness and anger. She never once stepped out of her apartment, and although her phone rang a few times, she failed to pick it up. She tried so hard to get the whole encounter out of her mind, but everything rushed back to her all at once.

At work the next day, things were slower than ever. Diana had hoped that going to work would have given her something to keep her mind on, instead of it always wandering back to Dino. But, it had the opposite effect. She scolded herself for caring this much. She wanted to hate him, she wanted to. But, she couldn't deny the fact that she was happy that he was here. That he wasn't dead. That they still had a chance.

At 12 sharp, Diana was already out of office doors and racing to Megan's café. She needed to talk to Megan, to tell her everything that happened. She always knew how to deal with these things. Diana had almost started feeling relieved, thinking that her best friend would be able to make her feel better. But the moment she reached the café, she felt everything tumble away and fall apart.

There, inside the café, Megan was sitting at a table with Dino. As Diana stood outside and watched, she saw them laughing over something. She saw Megan look at her watch, and saw her rush Dino to leave. Diana looked down at her own watch and saw that it was 12:04. There was another six minutes before she usually arrived at the café.

Why was Megan rushing him out? Wouldn't she think that Diana would want to see him? Diana had yet to tell her about their encounter. Then, Diana's eyes bulged out of their sockets. Her heart ached of both jealousy and anger.

Dino leaned down and gave Megan a hug, which she accepted. The two stood for a few seconds as they embraced each other. After breaking apart, Megan smiled and waved him off.

What was going on?

As Dino ran out of the café, Diana quickly ran behind a nearby sign and hid from his view. He turned and walked down the sidewalk and Diana watched as he disappeared. She waited a few more minutes before walking out from behind the sign and took a deep breath as she entered the café.

Just like always, Megan sat at the table they always sat at. She looked up as Diana walked in and smiled as Diana sat across from her.

"Hey!"

"Hi."

"You okay? I called you a few times over the weekend, and you didn't reply."

"Actually, no."

"What the hell happened?" Megan almost jumped out of her seat and grabbed onto Diana's arm. Diana glanced at her best friend. Why was she pretending like she didn't know? Considering she just talked to him, it was highly likely that he told her about going to see Diana. She should know that Diana was upset because of that. Why was she lying?

Diana didn't want to not trust her best friend. But, she had to make sure. So, she tested Megan, "I saw Dino."

"What? Oh my goodness, where?"

Diana didn't know what to say. The last person she thought she needed to second-guess was Megan. Why was she pretending not to know? There was a possibility that he didn't tell her. But, even still, Megan failed to mention that he was here moments before Diana stepped in. Knowing her, she would've told Diana the second she had walked into the café.

To play it safe, Diana decided not to lie about her encounter with Dino. But, decided against questioning Megan about her own little encounter. It seems like she doesn't want to tell her anyway.

"He, uh, came to my apartment. We talked, I yelled at him, and told him I never want to see him again."

"And is that the truth?"

"Yes. No. Yes – " Diana sighed, putting her head in her hands. "….no."

"So, why'd you say that to him?"

"I was angry. Pissed. Upset. I mean, he had three years, Megan."

"I know, but maybe he had a reason?" Diana caught on to the sound of her hopeful voice, and all of a sudden, she was pissed. Her own best friend was on Dino's side? Even to the point of secretly meeting up with him and making excuses for him? But, Diana kept her cool. She had to pretend like she didn't know until she figured things out herself; she'll let Megan think she has the upper hand.

"I don't think there's any excuse for pretending to be dead and hiding from your girlfriend for three years. Anyway, I got a lot of work to do. Later." With that, Diana stood and left, leaving her best friend behind.

Walking out of the café, the day her world came crashing down three years ago replayed in her mind. And the words that came out of Dino's father, "You killed him. It was all because of you."


	10. Chapter 9

All week, Diana avoided Megan. The mere thought of the betrayal that occurred was enough to break Diana's heart all over again. She did not want to believe her own best friend had met up with her ex-and-supposed-to-be-dead boyfriend and did not even think about mentioning it to her.

The fact that she didn't got Diana thinking. What were they talking about? Were they planning something together? Did Megan know all this time that Dino wasn't dead? Why didn't she tell Diana then? Were they together? Was her best friend the reason why her boyfriend hid from her all these years?

But, she knew Megan wouldn't do that. There was no way. But, there's no other explanation for their secret meet-up.

Friday, after work, Diana decided not to go straight home. She went for a walk around the neighbourhood, and tried to clear her thoughts. She walked to the water front and stood by herself, looking out to the water.

The continuous lapping of the water kind of calmed down her mind, but soon the thoughts of everything that has happened rushed back into her mind as the waves rushed onto shore. And as the skies turned gray and the storm clouds moved in, Diana's tears fell in sync with the rain from the skies.

Standing there alone, Diana cried her heart out. Cried for the past. Cried for the last three years. Cried for the last few days. Cried for everything.

With Dino coming back from the dead to Megan keeping secrets from her to Derek's small kiss, Diana's felt like her brain might just explode from all her thoughts. She was very confused and just wanted everything to go away for a few moments, so she could regroup.

Suddenly, the rain around Diana stopped. But, as she looked out to the water, the storm kept raging on. Surprised, Diana looked up to find an umbrella above her head. She spun around to find the owner of the umbrella to see Derek holding it for the both of them.

"What happened?" Worry filled his voice and he wrinkled up his eyebrows. Diana was taken aback and was speechless. The two of them stood staring at each other, until Diana finally found her voice.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was just walking back home, and I saw you standing here yourself in the rain. So, I came up to say hi. What are _you _doing here? You okay?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm okay." Diana turned to face back the water and wiped her tears away. Derek could tell she wasn't in the mood to be questioned and to talk. And last time, he had already pushed her too far. So he took a step forward to stand next to her.

"Okay. But, if you need a shoulder to lean on, I'll be here."

And as the storm raged around them, the two of them stood in silence and watched the water together. Diana looked up at him, and expected to see him staring out at the water. But, to her surprise, he was looking down at her. She didn't know why, but it made her stomach flutter a little and she looked away immediately.

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"For being such an understanding, considerate and overall good friend." She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed, hoping that comment would push away all her confused feelings for him. That saying it aloud would help convince herself that that was all he was to her. A good friend.

He laughed. Little did she know how much that had hurt him.


	11. Chapter 10

Diana awoke to the ringing of her cell phone. She reached around for it, with her eyes still half-closed. After she finally found it, she answered with a hello.

"Diana?"

"Yeah, who's this?"

"This is Megan." All the sleepiness washed away and Diana sat up in bed, surprised that Megan had called her so early in the morning. She glanced at her clock to see that it was already 1 in the afternoon.

"Oh, hi."

"Are you upset with me? Why have you been avoiding me all week?" Megan's voice was quiet, and Diana immediately felt guilty for not showing up even once for their lunch meetings. That she always used "I'm busy" as her excuse when Megan called to hang out. And even when Megan texted her, her replies were short and simple. She thought Megan would just think she has gotten very busy lately. But, she now knew it would be hard to fool her best friend.

"I've been busy, that's all." And yet, she still used the same excuse.

"Oh. Well, you busy today? I kind of wanted to see you."

"Yeah, sure." She didn't want to push her best friend any further. The two decided to meet at the park near Diana's apartment. Since spring had taken over the wintry weather, it would be nice to sit and talk under the shade of the tree and the soft breeze.

After saying good byes, Diana was about to hang up but Megan surprised her yet again.

"I know you've been upset at me recently. I'm sorry… I don't really know what for. But, I can tell I did something bad. So, sorry." Megan let out a big sigh of relief; as if she was happy she finally got to say that.

And at that, Diana forgave Megan and regretted not just asking her about what actually happened. But, only a little, because she was still angered that she didn't tell her on her own terms.

"It's – we can talk about this later?"

"Uh yeah, okay. Later."

An hour later, Diana walked through the park. She watched as little kids ran around chasing the geese and older couples sitting together, feeding the pigeons. She walked, and looked for the meeting place that Megan had described to her.

_Bench across the fountain, you'd know which one when you get there. _

Diana didn't think too much about it at the time, but now that she arrived, she questioned why she didn't ask Megan to be more specific. At the fountain, there were four benches around it. And if she sat at one bench, she wouldn't be able to see the other three, due to the size of the fountain.

Looking down at her watch, she saw that she still had a few more minutes before their meeting time. So Diana started walking around the fountain, and hoped Megan was right about knowing which bench it was.

First bench was occupied by a mom and her son, who was eating an ice-cream. Nope.

Second bench was occupied by two teenager lovers who definitely needed to get a room. Nope.

Third bench was occupied by a lonely hobo, who was taking a nap under the sun. Nope.

The last bench was occupied by- oh my god. She was going to kill Megan.


	12. Chapter 11

He immediately jumped out of his seat when he saw her and the two of them stood staring at each other for a whole minute. Diana finally shook herself out of her trance and turned to walk away. She did not want to talk to him, at all.

Dino ran and grabbed onto her wrist. The shivers that ran up and down her arm reminded her that she still had feelings for him. The past three years, she had tried again and again to forget about him and to move on. But, for some reason her heart kept yearning for him, even though at the time, she knew that he was long gone.

However, now that he was here standing in front of her, she couldn't get past her anger for him. Now that he was here with her, Diana just couldn't find it in her to forgive him for deserting her all these years. And, for a split second, she had wished he was actually dead, which she took back right away.

She realised that she was foolish to believe that if he could ever return and would return, things could get back to normal.

"Give me five minutes to explain," He pleaded. "Please."

Diana spun to face him, and pulled her arm free in the process.

"What is there to say?" She spat. "I'm sorry for pretending to be dead all these years, for not even trying to contact you? But, I'm here now, so that's all that counts. So, just forgive me already. Forget the fact that you've been spending the last three years crying over me, because I apologized and that makes up for it all."

Diana averted her eyes, afraid that if she made eye contact with him, she wouldn't be able to control her tears. She focused on everywhere but his face. Dino slowly walked up to her, as if afraid she would dash off if he approached her too quickly. Diana didn't even flinch when he placed his index finger on her chin, and lifted her face up to meet his.

"I only need five minutes."

"You had three years. And I'm done waiting for you." Diana's voice broke and the tears began to flow. In a flash, he had her in her arms and held her against his chest. Diana wanted to push him away, to get as far as possible from him and to wake up from this dream/nightmare. But the small part of her that missed him won and she didn't make a move to escape his embrace.

"It was all a misunderstanding. I wasn't dead at all. This whole time I was afraid to come and see you because I thought you hated me."

"And you think I don't hate you now?"

Dino smiled and was relieved that she was at least making jokes with him. Unless, she actually does hate him. He held her by the shoulders and studied her face, and hoped to find any sign of forgiveness. When she met his eyes and didn't glance away immediately, he knew he at least won 5 minutes to explain everything to her.

But, in case she still hated him in the end, he pulled her close once again, giving her one last hug. This time, however, he felt Diana's arms around him as well, and hoped this was a good sign. If someone in the park were to glance their way, they would simply think that they were two ordinary couples.


	13. Chapter 12

As the two of them sat on the last bench together, life continued to move around them. Before Diana could urge him to start and remind him that he had five minutes only, he started with an unsteady voice which grew stronger as he explained.

"Three years ago, I was shot – yes. I was badly injured – yes. I was hospitalized for months – yes. I died – obviously not. I don't know where you heard that from."

Diana opened her mouth to explain, but Dino continued on before she could slip one word in. She understood that he meant for her to keep her questions and comments until the end. So, she stayed quiet for the rest of the five minutes.

"All I know is that when I finally got to leave the hospital, my father came to pick me up and that was the first time he spoke more than three words to me. At first, I was surprised that he had come to get me. After all these years, I finally get it. You were the only thing standing between me and his vision of what he wanted me to be. With you gone, it wouldn't be hard for him to convince me to become the newest leader of the clan.

"He told me that you came to visit me once when I was unconscious. You saw him and told him to tell me that we were over. That you were tired of having to deal with all this mafia crap. And although I was angered and upset that I wasn't even given the chance to see you one last time and to explain and to make promises to you that would make you stay, I understood. It wasn't safe for you to stay by my side.

"The time that we were together, I tried my best to stay away from my family's activities, because I wanted to keep you safe. But, ultimately, that's what it is. My family's business. And that includes me. So, no matter how much I wanted and needed to be with you and protect you, trying just wasn't good enough.

"What happened three years ago woke me up. I realized that I couldn't go on living a double life, thinking that I could be with you and keep you safe at the same time. Every second that we're still together, is another second that you are at risk.

"All these years, the only thing stopping me from coming to see you was the constant thinking that you were over me, that you found someone who treats you right and can protect you and be good to you. I was selfish; I didn't want to endure the pain of seeing you with someone else. So for that, I'm sorry.

"That was until a few weeks ago, I had some business here, and that required me to move back here for a few weeks. And, one day, I ran into Megan on the subway. I desperately wanted to know how you were, to know what you were doing now, and to know every little detail of your past three years.

"So, naturally, I went up to say hi to her. And she looked at me as if she just saw a ghost. That was when I discovered that all these years you thought that I was dead. That my father had lied to you, told you I was dead to get you to leave me alone. It was all part of his scheme to get me to get back into the family business.

"After I explained everything to Megan, she told me that you were still waiting for me. That even after all these years of thinking me dead, you weren't over me and you even went the distance to blame yourself for my 'death'. And you had even given up on your art.

"She gave me your apartment address and after I told her that I wanted to surprise you, she promised to keep bumping into me a secret. But, after my first try at surprising you failed, we met up again and we schemed up a way to lure you out to meet me."

Dino took a deep breath, ran his hand through his hair and glanced at Diana with a soft smile on his face.

"And, here we are."


	14. Chapter 13

-Three years ago -

"So, I just turned around and kissed him."

It was two weeks before Christmas and the sun had been setting really early. It was only 7PM and the streets were already empty and dark. Diana and Dino were the only ones leaving footprints on the newly fallen snow and their laughter echoed through the darkness. The two had just gotten out of the university, as they had stayed behind to finish some work together, and were currently walking to get a drink at a local coffee shop. With their arms linked, they pulled, balanced and warmed each other as they walked through the snow.

"You're lying." Diana laughed.

"You're right. I could only ever kiss you." He stopped and turned to look down at her smiling face. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold and the wind blew her stray hair onto her face. He brushed them aside and leaned down to kiss her.

"CAVALLONE!" A voice called out from behind them. Immediately, Dino pushed Diana aside and stepped between the voice and her. A few meters away, a figure emerged out of the darkness and walked closer to them. Behind him, 3 more followed.

"Look who it is. Cavallone with his little girlfriend."

"What do you want?" Behind him, Diana could feel him tense up and she herself felt wary. She knew all about Dino's family and background. But, she had never encountered it face-to-face because he did his best to keep her out of it, to protect her.

"Don't get so scared. We're not going to hurt you. We just have a little message for your father that we want you to deliver for us. You think you could do that?"

"Why can't you just do it yourself?"

"Aww, don't tell me you're scared of daddy."

Dino fell silent. Not because that was the truth, rather he had nothing else to say to them. He turned, grabbed Diana's hand and started walking away. They walked about a few steps when they heard the four of them approaching them from behind. Immediate, Dino spun around and threw himself in front of Diana.

They lunged towards him and holding Diana's hand, Dino ducked aside. Eventually, one of the men caught him and the two tumbled onto the floor, and rolled in the snow. Diana stood breathless; there was nothing she could do, except to stand and watch. She knew that if she were to try to help, she would only end up getting in the way.

As two of them fought on the ground with Dino, the remaining two glanced at Diana and charged at her. In a blink of an eye, one had tackled her and slammed her up against the brick wall. Her heart raced and her mind was blank. Her head ached on contact with the wall and she started feeling woozy. She threw random punches, in hopes even one would make contact with either of them. But, all of them failed. She kicked and thrashed, but still they did not let go.

While one of them stood behind and smirked, the one that pushed Diana against the wall brought his face close to her face. She could smell the reek of cigarettes and beer in his breath and it took a lot in her not to vomit in his face (Although she should have).

"Pleasure to finally meet you Mrs. Cavallone. It's only courtesy to leave you a little gift." He reached into his pockets and brought out a pocketknife that he dramatically flipped open and brought up to skim her face. He traced her jaw line with the edge of the knife and brought it across her face.

Diana's heart beat quickly against her chest and she used all of her might to push him away, with no success. The cool metal of the knife found its way to the bridge of her nose and paused.

"I wonder what your little boyfriend would do if I kissed you, eh?" With the knife still paused on her face, he brought his lips to hers. The next few moments happened in an instance.

Diana moved her face to the side to avoid his lips on hers. He continued to bring his face closer to hers. At the same time, a brute force came in from the left and knocked the man holding Diana against the wall off of his feet after his knife was pushed against Diana's eyebrow. She winced as she felt the trickle of blood fall down.

She watched as Dino punched the man on the ground repeatedly and watched as the second man that had stood behind during her attack reached into his jacket to pull out a gun. Diana screamed Dino's name as the gun was pointed in his direction and was clicked into place.

At the sound of her screaming, Dino looked up at her to see if she was okay. With his back turned to the gun, it went off and the bullet coursed its way to hit him in the back. He paused, dropped and fell onto the snow beside the man he was just punching.

The four men ran off, Diana ran to his side and screamed at him to not die. She took off her scarf and pushed it against the wound, hoping to stop the blood from pouring out. Lying face down on the snow, he reached out with his left hand to grab onto her arm.

"Diana…" He struggled as he spoke her name and it came out as a whisper. She leaned in closer to hear and wiped her tears away. "Diana… I… love…"

And he stopped. Diana screamed at him to wake up. But all her screams were soon mere whimpers drowned out by the sound of police and ambulances speeding down the streets.

She sat outside the ER, staring wide-eyed at the floor and twiddling her thumbs. After the ambulances arrived, the police questioned her and allowed her to ride with him to the hospital. The whole way, she held onto his hand and prayed that he would wake up. But it didn't look good. Although he was not pronounced dead, there had been no doctors or nurses who came out of the ER yet to tell her how he was.

As she continued to replay the events, someone sat down next to her.

"Ah, so you're the famous Diana."

Diana looked up to see an older gentleman dressed in a nice suit and tie with messy blond hair and stubble. It was Dino's father.

"Mr. Cavallone, it's nice to – "

"Save your manners. I'm not here to make small talk." Diana was taken aback, how could this rude and serious man be the father of the sweet, gentle and kind guy she loved so much? "We both know he's in their fighting a battle that he will not win. A battle that he did not have to fight.

"I raised him up to be a fighter for the Cavallone Family, and even as a younger kid, he knew he wanted to run the family business one day. We agreed that he could try to go to university for a year to give him options. But, we all knew he would come back to work for the family eventually. That all changed when he met you.

"He started talking about his art, as if that was the only thing he had going for him. He started talking about university, as if that was the only place he had. He started talking about you, as if you were the only one that needed him.

"You took my only son from me. And I've stood on the sidelines all these years, because I just wanted my son to be happy. But these past few months have been hard for the family, I'm growing old and we needed someone to take over for me. We needed Dino. But, he wouldn't even consider it anymore. Said it wasn't safe for you. That he needed to protect you.

"And where did that get him? He's in an ER now, because he needed to protect you. I was the one who taught him to fight and I know he could easily take down four men by himself and walk away without a scratch. So, may I ask you, Ms. Sim, what changed today?" He finally took his gaze off of the wall they were sitting in front of and glanced up at her.

"What are you saying? Are you… are you saying that I…" Diana was speechless, she could not believe what she was hearing.

"You seem like a smart girl, I think you know what I'm saying."

"What I don't understand…"

"We both want the best for him. And I gave you all these years, and where had that gotten him? So, these last few days, just let me have him back and leave him alone."

"No. You can't do this. You weren't even a father to him all these years. You can't just walk back into his life and expect that everything will be okay. I deserve to be here with him as much as you."

"Ahh, that's where you're wrong. I didn't kill him, did I?" Diana's heart stopped. She knew it was true. It was her. If she wasn't there, he would've fought them flawlessly and would've gotten out alive. It was her who called his name. It was her who he had to protect. It was her who killed him. Dino's father might have probably seen the look of realization on her face, because he stabbed the dagger in one last time.

"You killed him. It was all because of you." At that, Diana cried as she ran out of the hospital. As she exited, she stopped and turned back to the hospital. She closed her eyes and whispered under her breath to no one in particular.

"I'm sorry."


	15. Chapter 14

Diana sat at home; glad to be indoors with the air conditioning on. She watched out her window as people rushed past in the heat, looking as if they were on the brink of melting. The sun was brighter than ever, and clouds were missing from the skies. She craved some ice-cream, but did not want to step foot outside her apartment building.

She sighed as she walked to her refrigerator and pulled out the closest thing, some yogurt. She grabbed a spoon and plopped herself down on the couch. That moment, she sensed that she was forgetting something but she couldn't seem to put her finger on it. So, she simply pushed it aside while eating another spoon of her yogurt.

A few months have passed since Dino's return and things have started to get better. Diana had successfully started drawing again. But it was going a bit slow, as she had not been drawing for almost three years. And although she still worked at the printing company, she planned to quit and find herself a job at an animation studio soon. She needed to restart her portfolio before she could apply though.

A few days after the day in the park, Diana ran into Derek. After several moments of hesitation, he finally worked up the courage to ask her out. To his dismay, she turned him down. She explained that her ex had returned from being away for a long time, and that they were trying to restart where they left off. Although he was very very very very very disappointed, Derek understood and agreed to still be friends (He was VERY disappointed. VERY. VERY.).

After she finished her yogurt, Diana heard her cell chime. She reached for it and turned it on to find a text message from Megan.

_Hey sorry! I'm working at a shift at the café, and it's quite busy right now. Can you do me a favour and bring me lunch? Thanks!_

She could not believe her best friend would make her leave her air conditioned palace and force her onto the streets to bring her some lunch.

_No. I'll die out there._

_Diana, pleeeeeeeease. I'll love you forever!_

Diana groaned. She felt bad for being so selfish, but it was too hot to venture outside. But, she knew Megan would do it for her, so she went and changed into a loose t-shirt and shorts. She grabbed her keys and phone, slipped on her flip-flops and trudged out into the heat.

Outside, it was Diana's turn to melt in the heat. She rushed to the closest McDonalds and bought Megan's lunch as well as a cold drink for herself. The coldness and sweetness of the drink made her feel reenergized, but the moment she stepped outside, she regretted wanting to be a good friend.

After finally catching the subway down to the café, Diana relaxed in the air conditioned shuttle and almost fell asleep. Luckily or unluckily, her stop wasn't that far and she got off before she fell asleep. She walked to the café to find the dark blinds all the way down over the usually open and clear windows. She didn't give it a second thought, thinking it was to keep out the sun.

As she pushed the door open, the door's bell chimed. She looked in to find that it was completely dark inside. At first, she was confused. Where was everyone? Why were the lights closed? Suddenly, a flame sparked from across the room. Megan's face appeared behind the candle, and Diana saw her holding a cake.

Then, it came to her. It was her birthday today.

_"_Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Diana. Happy birthday to you!" The voices of everyone in the room echoed back to her and Diana stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do.

The light flickered on, and she squinted to adjust her eyes to the light again. She looked around and saw the faces of some of her friends smiling back at her. Her co-workers, her friends from university, friends she'd met at other places, Derek, Megan and Dino.

Megan rushed up and brought the candle up to her face.

"Make a wish."

Diana closed her eyes and pretended to make a wish; she really didn't know what to wish for. As she opened them, she blew out the candles. She was surprised to see everyone quiet and looking off at the back of the room. She followed their gazes and saw that they were staring at Dino.

He smiled awkwardly at her and slowly approached where she was standing. He took her hands in his, brought them up to his lips and gave them a kiss.

"Happy birthday."

"Thanks."

"I know that I haven't been here for the past three years, and that you really hated me all this time. I was an idiot for not coming to look for you sooner. I shouldn't have been so selfish or such a wimp and just come to see you one last time. But, the past few months that I have been here have been the best times that I have had in such a long time. And it's because I spent it with you by my side.

"And, uh, I think that's how I would like to spend the rest of my life, really. So," He reached into his pockets and pulled out a box. As everyone in the room cheered him on, he knelt down in front of her and her heart almost popped out of her chest. He opened the box to reveal a diamond ring that sparkled in the light.

"Will you marry me?"


	16. Conclusion

Yaaay! Finally done!

I know it was really rushed and that there are a lot of dumb parts and uh, the characters weren't developed and yeah. But, I still hope it kept you company on a really boring day or something. I hope you liked it and I hope you liked the outcome and I hope you liked the plot and I hope you liked characters and I hope you liked the writing and I hoped you like the everything.

Hmm, there were a lot of things that I wanted to add, but I didn't… either because I don't have time to finish it by your birthday or I struggled to find a nice way to tie into the story. For example, I wanted to add a chapter that was from another character's POV, but really, this story is not specifically only in your POV. So yeah. And uh, I wanted to have a chapter with you and Derek (LOOOL) talking but, I couldn't really fill out a whole chapter, so it got cut down to like a paragraph.

But anyway, that was the story for you. Not much else I could say about it. Oh! All the times that you asked me what I was doing for the past month. And I was just like "Nothing." "Nothing illegal." "Nothing much." "Nothing really.", I was really working on this. So, yeah. Nothing to do with Gaara or whatever you pervert.

So yeah, this is my concluding whatever.

Happy birthday, Diana. May you eat a lot of durian for you birthday, because although it sunk in this story, it will forever live in my heart. May you continue to do your thing with drawing and don't ever give up on it. May you always be a good friend to me, because you know without you, I will literally have no one. May you forgive me for every time that I annoy you or upset you. May you never have to cry as much as you did in this story. May you be able to live the life of your dreams as you did in this story. May you one day find your one true love and be happy for the rest of your life.

Whaaaaaale, that's the end.

Happy birthday and you may now cry from how beautiful this whole thing was. I know, I know.


End file.
